How to Live Stream on Facebook: “Go Live” to Share in a New Way

Last Updated: December 15, 2017 - 9:00 EST

Have you ever been at an event or witnessed something amazing and wanted to share it with your friends in the moment? With Facebook’s new live broadcasting feature, you can! We here at TechBoomers are very excited about this feature of Facebook and can’t wait to tell you all about it. Here’s what we’re going to share with you in this tutorial:

What Facebook live is and how it works

How to livestream on Facebook

How to make Facebook live streaming even better

Ready to get started with learning about Facebook live? We’ll be starting by telling you the basics of Facebook live and how the feature works next. If you’re interested in learning about other features Facebook has to offer, check out our Facebook tutorials first.

What is Facebook live and how does it work?

Facebook live is a feature of Facebook.com that allows users to broadcast live video for their Facebook friends to watch. You can easily live stream from your mobile device, and when you’re done, a recording of your stream will be posted to your profile so those who missed out can watch back later.

Facebook live uses the camera and microphone built in to your mobile device or tablet, so you can stream a live video feed to your Facebook friends and followers. You can do this while connected to Wi-Fi, or use your mobile data. Those who follow you will be notified when you start a new live stream.

That’s a basic explanation of Facebook live. Want to learn how to broadcast live on Facebook? Read our step-by-step instructions for Facebook streaming below.

How to livestream on Facebook

1. Open the Facebook mobile app on your device.

On your device’s home screen, tap the Facebook icon to launch the app on your iOS or Android device. If you haven’t downloaded the app yet, you can get it for free from the app store.

2. At the top of your screen, tap Live.

To start the process of setting up your live stream, tap the Live button inside the “What’s on your mind” box, near the top of your screen.

3. Allow access to your camera and microphone.

In order to live stream on Facebook, you’ll need to let the app have access to your device’s camera and microphone. Tap Allow if the app asks for access.

4. Enter a description and adjust settings.

Now you can add some details for your live stream and adjust its settings. This is where you can make changes to your stream’s privacy, if you don’t want it to be open for just anyone to watch. Tap either Friends or Post, Story to access the Live settings page.

Now, choose who you’d like to be able to see your live video. You can also decide whether you’d like your live stream to be shared as a post once you’re finished streaming. Lastly, indicate whether you want notifications to be sent to your Facebook friends.

5. Tap Start Live Video to begin streaming.

Now that you have your live stream’s settings all properly configured, you can get ready to start your broadcast. Make sure you and your background look how you’d like them to. When you’re ready to begin, tap the Start Live Video button. Then, enjoy streaming for your Facebook friends!

6. Add comments and use special effects.

While you’re streaming, there are a couple other features you might want to take advantage of. You can post comments for your viewers if you like. Tap the comment button to access the commenting window.

Facebook also offers some cool special effects you can use to make your video appear a certain way or add a fun touch. To access these features, tap the magic wand button.

You will see a variety of special effects options appear at the bottom of your screen. Tap one to apply it to your live video. Tap the no symbol to remove any effects you’ve applied.

7. Tap Finish when you are done streaming.

When you’re ready to finish your broadcast on the Facebook live app, tap Finish in the bottom right corner to end your stream. If you’ve opted to share your live video as a post on your profile, a recording of your full stream will now be posted for your friends to watch later.

That’s all you need to do to host your own live stream through Facebook, however, if you want to make your stream the best it can be, we have a few tips to help you improve it.

Tips to make your Facebook live streaming even better

1. Make sure you have a good Internet connection before you start.

Before you go through the steps to starting your live stream, we’d recommend checking your Internet connection to make sure you won’t lose connection to your network while you’re trying to stream. Go into your device’s settings and make sure you’re connected to your Wi-Fi network or cellular data, and that your Internet connection isn’t slow.

2. Watch popular live streams to learn how to make yours better.

If you watch some other people or organizations’ live broadcasts, you might be able to get some inspiration or ideas to improve your own live streams. Check out the Facebook pages of celebrities, companies, or anyone else whose content you enjoy.

Here are a few we’d recommend checking out if you’re not sure where to start:

3. Add fun filters and effects to your live video.

To make your live stream more fun, we’d recommend trying out some of the special effects and filters during your stream. As we showed in the instructions for how to live stream, it’s easy to add cool effects to your live video.

4. Try new things and get feedback from your viewers.

If you’re looking to improve your live streams on Facebook, you might want to try switching things up. Talk about a new topic, stream from a new setting, or make any other small changes you think your viewers would enjoy. Then, ask your viewers for feedback to see what they think. They might even have some suggestions for things to change or try out!

5. Go live in a group or event.

If you’re at a party, concert, or other type of event, and the event was organized by a Facebook group or through a Facebook event page, you might want to broadcast through that page instead of on your personal Facebook page. That way, anyone who was planning to attend but missed out on it can watch your stream, and people who attended the event can watch your live video later and relive the memories of being there.

To do this, open the page for the group or event in the Facebook app.

Then, tap Write Something.

From the options presented below the text box, tap Live Video. Then, you’ll be able to stream live the same way you normally would, but people who are part of the event or group you’re streaming to will be invited to watch, and you can post a recording of your stream to that page when you’re done.

We’ve given you all the information you need to have a successful Facebook live video stream. We hope our tips help you to share and make memories with your friends on Facebook.